Cats, though well-loved by a considerable proportion of the population, can present problems to pet owners. One of these problems is associated with the cat fur. Cat fur may cause an allergic reaction or irritation of the pet owner's sinuses. Cats without hair have been bred but without hair, cats are less appealing both visually and tactilely, their soft, silky fur being part of their allure. For some breeds of cats, such as Persians, periodic vacuum cleaning provides a satisfactory method of reducing their distribution of unwanted cat hairs. Many cats, however, will not tolerate the noise and disturbances of vacuum cleaning.
A second problem is associated with the need of a cat to constantly sharpen its claws by dragging them over roughened surfaces, all too often the owner's furniture and drapes. Numerous solutions have been proposed and tried to eliminate these less than desirable feline characteristics. Surgical procedures have been perfected for removing the front claws of a cat. However, this reduces their efficiency as mouse catchers and restricts the cat to a strictly indoor life, as the cat is no longer able to defend itself or escape danger by climbing trees.
Cat posts and furniture devices utilizing carpeting materials and/or rope have been developed which encourage the cat to exercise or sharpen its claws on a piece of furniture especially purchased for that purpose. However, such cat furniture devices do not address the problem of cat hair.
Still other cat beds, including soft, flexible cylindrical tunnel-like pet beds having a layer of urethane foam, flexible cloth sack-like devices and flexible open ended cup-like beds are strictly resting places for cats and address neither problem.
One solution for removing excess hair from cats and other animals has involved furniture devices which extend radially directed brush bristles about the sides and top of the narrow opening so that as a cat progresses through the narrow opening, its back and sides are rubbed with the brush bristles. However, such devices require frequent cleaning and do not address the tendency for cats to leave considerable quantities of hair in their normal napping area. Such devices do not address the problem of attracting the cat to pass through what may be a narrow opening in an unpleasant combing apparatus, nor do they address the claw-sharpening problem.
Another problem associated with cats is the difficulty in safely and comfortably transporting the cat in a moving vehicle. Routine trips to the veterinarian for medical visits or the occasional trip transporting the cat to the kennel for boarding or even the vacation trip with the cat, can be somewhat traumatic and unsettling to the cat. It can be very dangerous, both for the cat and for the operator of a moving vehicle, for the cat to be allowed to roam unconfined in the moving vehicle. Pet harnesses and pet car seats utilizing pet harnesses have been used to restrain dogs in automobiles and are known in the art. These devices restrain the movement of the pet but do not prevent items from falling onto the pet in the event of a crash.
Also known in the art are wire cages and plastic-wire pet cages, as well as flexible lightweight nylon pet carriers having stiff tops and sides. However, confining the cat to a wire cage or to a seldom-used plastic-wire transporting cage can be very disturbing in the cat's routine.
Furthermore, the flexible nylon pet carriers and the flexible pet beds previously disclosed provide no rigid structural frame for anchoring the safety belt in a moving vehicle, nor do the flexible pet beds provide the necessary confinement for the cat. In a sudden braking situation, the safety belt may bruise or injure the animal.
Despite recognition of these various problems with cats as pets, the art has not responded to date with an article of cat furniture which is attractive to a cat and which provides a structurally rigid place of residence for the cat, and provides both an attractive surface for sharpening its claws and a means for removing and retaining hair from the cat. At the same time, what is also needed is a carrier for safely containing the article of cat furniture with which the cat is comfortable and to which the cat is accustomed when the cat is in a moving vehicle.